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    Home » Simple Vegan Recipes » Snacks

    How to Make Perfect Nutritional Yeast Popcorn

    Last Modified: Jun 17, 2019 by Becky Striepe

    Disclosure: This post may contain Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. See my Privacy Policy for more details.

    Recipe Print

    Nutritional yeast popcorn is nothing new, but it's so hard to get the nooch to stick. Here's my secret.

    bowl of popcorn with nutritional yeast

    Do you love nutritional yeast popcorn but hate how you end up with lightly-coated popcorn at the top of the bowl and oily nooch at the bottom? It's all about technique.

    Let's make some perfect popcorn!

    More Popcorn Power: Homemade Ranch Popcorn

    What the Heck is Nutritional Yeast?

    Y'all, if you haven't had savory, cheesy, addictive nutritional yeast popcorn yet, how are you living your life? Even if you've never heard of nutritional yeast (aka "nooch") before, I encourage you to drop everything and get on this train.

    It's a delicious train.

    Nutritional yeast doesn't sound exciting, but it's a pretty magical ingredient. It has a slightly cheesy flavor that's great in vegan cheese sauces, sprinkled over rice or pasta, or in place of parmesan cheese in vegan pesto.

    But my favorite thing to do with nooch is put copious amounts over freshly-popped popcorn.

    close-up of popcorn covered in nutritional yeast

    Not only is nutritional yeast delicious, but it's good for you, too. Two tablespoons of the stuff contains:

    • 8 grams of protein
    • 130% of your daily vitamin B12
    • 4 grams of dietary fiber
    • 640% of your thiamin
    • 570% of your riboflavin
    • 280% of your niacin
    • 480% vitamin B6
    • 60% of your folate

    And, as Cadry explains, yes, it's vegan, because "yeast is part of the fungus family, like mushrooms."

    How to Get Nutritional Yeast to Stick to Popcorn

    An air popper is handy, but it's not required to make this recipe. The trick to getting a good, even coverage of nooch on your popcorn is patience. You can pop your popcorn using whatever method you like.

    popcorn coming out of the air popper

    You can even pop up bagged, microwaveable popcorn, just keep your eyes peeled for dairy ingredients on the label. Ideally, you want totally plain, unsalted popcorn as the base for this recipe.

    These are two keys to getting that sweet, sweet nooch to stick to your popcorn:

    1. melted vegan butter or oil (not optional -- do not yell at me)
    2. patience

    Once you finish popping, transfer the plain popcorn to a bowl with high sides, then drizzle on about a third of your melted vegan butter or oil and shake on a third of the nooch. Then, toss the popcorn. A lot. Toss, toss, toss!

    Repeat with another third of your fat and nooch, then with the final third. Make sure you toss aplenty between applications, and you'll end up with perfectly-coated nutritional yeast popcorn every single time.

    close-up of popcorn covered in nutritional yeast

    Nutritional Yeast Popcorn

    Nutritional yeast popcorn is nothing new, but it's so hard to get the nooch to stick. Here's my secret.
    Prevent your screen from going dark
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Snack
    Cuisine: Vegan
    Keyword: nutritional yeast popcorn
    Prep Time: 2 minutes
    Cook Time: 5 minutes
    Total Time: 7 minutes
    Servings: 2
    Calories: 371kcal
    Author: Becky Striepe

    Ingredients

    • ½ cup popcorn kernels - or a 2-serving pouch of microwave popcorn
    • 3 tablespoons melted refined coconut oil - or vegan butter
    • ½ teaspoon salt - optional
    • 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes - divided

    Instructions

    • Pop your popcorn using your preferred method, then transfer it to a large bowl with nice, high sides.
    • Drizzle 1 tablespoon of your melted coconut oil onto the popcorn, stopping once in a while to give the bowl a toss. You want your popcorn coated really well with oil.
    • Sprinkle on 1 tablespoon of nutritional yeast plus the salt (if using), doing that same tossing thing.
    • Repeat steps 2-3 (twice) with the remaining oil and nutritional yeast.
    • Devour. Wish that your air popper didn't limit you to popping ½ cup of kernels at once. Make more.

    Nutrition

    Nutrition Facts
    Nutritional Yeast Popcorn
    Amount per Serving
    Calories
    371
    % Daily Value*
    Fat
     
    23
    g
    35
    %
    Saturated Fat
     
    18
    g
    90
    %
    Polyunsaturated Fat
     
    1
    g
    Monounsaturated Fat
     
    2
    g
    Sodium
     
    584
    mg
    24
    %
    Potassium
     
    337
    mg
    10
    %
    Carbohydrates
     
    35
    g
    12
    %
    Fiber
     
    8
    g
    32
    %
    Sugar
     
    0.4
    g
    0
    %
    Protein
     
    10
    g
    20
    %
    Calcium
     
    3
    mg
    0
    %
    Iron
     
    2
    mg
    11
    %
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
    Tried this recipe? Share your photo!Mention @GlueAndGlitter on Instagram or Twitter!

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    About Becky Striepe

    Headshot of Becky Striepe in front of a teal wall

    Hi there! I'm Becky Striepe (rhymes with sleepy), and I love using gadgets and shortcuts to create easy vegan comfort food recipes for busy people. Whether you love your Instant Pot, your air fryer, or just love delicious plant-based meals, stick around. You'll like it here.

    Learn more about me >>>

    Reader Interactions

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      Recipe Rating




    1. chow vegan

      October 26, 2014 at 10:49 pm

      So that's the secret to adding nutritional yeast to popcorn! Mine always ends up at the bottom of the bowl. I must try your method. :-)

      Reply
      • Becky Striepe

        October 27, 2014 at 8:06 am

        The patience is the hardest part, because time is all that stands between me and noochy popcorn.

        Reply
    2. Mary

      October 22, 2014 at 11:20 pm

      I've made popcorn with nutritional yeast before, but it is so nice to have a recipe to go by!

      Reply
    3. Jacquelyn @justjacq

      October 21, 2014 at 1:31 pm

      I LOVE adding nutritional yeast to popcorn! I add it with chili powder and garlic salt... yum!

      Reply
      • Becky Striepe

        October 21, 2014 at 1:47 pm

        Well now that is on my to do list!

        Reply

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    About Me

    Glue and Glitter
    Hi! My name is Becky Striepe (rhymes with “sleepy”). I love using gadgets and shortcuts to create easy vegan comfort food recipes for busy people. Whether you love your Instant Pot, your air fryer, or just love delicious plant-based meals, stick around. You'll like it here. → READ MORE

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